Your Guide to Medical Imaging Equipment

Enjoy these tips, tricks and insights that answer 100's of questions we've received from radiology and imaging professionals that need help buying, selling, servicing and maintaining their medical imaging equipment: MRI, CT, C-Arm, Digital X-ray, PET/CT and Women's Health. We extend the life of imaging equipment so that healthcare providers worldwide can extend the lives of patients. This is why we answer your imaging equipment questions.

We at Block Imaging have been receiving a growing number of questions related to accreditation and what it means exactly. Listed below are some of the most common questions and concerns we’ve been hearing along with brief answers to help lend some clarity on the topic. For more definitive answers, we recommend contacting one of the organizations linked below.

If you're on the hunt for a Siemens 1.5T MRI scanner, you've probably already realized that there are a number of models available on the secondary market. While it's great to have options, it can also make the decision more complicated.

When people hit the market for a 64-slice CT scanner, the GE VCT and the Siemens Sensation are two models that are likely to be "first pagers" on that initial Google search. While these models aren't that hard to find, what can be much harder is deciphering how they stack up side-by-side. They're both 64-slice scanners, with high-end features and upgrade options, from well-respected, leading manufacturers- and they fall in the same ballpark price bracket. So how do you choose?

Below are a few considerations from both the hardware/features side of things and the ownership experience side that will help you as you narrow down your 64-slice CT scanner options.

Back in December 2015, the Section 179 deduction was raised to up to $500,000 on qualifying purchases under $2,000,000. The deduction rate (up from a drastic forecast the previous year of a mere $25,000) was retroactive for equipment purchased and installed in 2015 and will continue for purchases made throughout 2016. The 50% bonus depreciation, available in previous years, was also reinstated and kicks in once expenditures hit the 500k mark.

All of this is great news for anyone who has purchased or will purchase in the last bit of 2016, but what about 2017? For those who have followed Section 179, the deduction has changed quite a bit over the years and seems to be perennially on the table for more change. Well, now there’s more to the story that could make right now through December 31, 2017 the most advantageous Section 179 scenario yet.

Pretty much everyone can agree that using energy more efficiently is a good thing. What some of us differ on is the best way to do it. When it comes to your MRI scanner suite, however, it does seem there's a wrong way and a right way to get the efficiency you're looking for.

Keep reading to find out the do's and don'ts of upgrading the lighting in your MRI scan room.

Due to the 7% reimbursement cuts to CR-processed scans beginning in 2018 (via The Consolidated Appropriations Act), the next 13 months are "crunch time" in making the decision of whether or not to upgrade from CR to DR.

At this point, the benefits of upgrading to direct-to-digital scanning are widely understood, making the decision, primarily, a budgetary one. To help ease that decision and clarify what exactly is being paid for with that total upgrade price, we've compiled the following points to share what may be needed and included along with a detector purchase for a seamless integration into your facility's equipment stable.

The question, “Which C-arm image intensifier size is best for my facility?” comes up a lot in our team's conversations with imaging equipment buyers. If you are shopping for a C-arm machine and don’t know which size image intensifier (II) you really want or need, below is a quick walk-through of the differences between the two most common II sizes to help you make that important decision.

Are you in need of some help with cath lab equipment planning? How about choosing the best lab for your facility? Or maybe you have questions about the process of refurbishing a cath lab. If any of these are the case, this is the perfect "best of" list for your easy reference.

Scroll on for our best articles from the last three years to help you compare, decide, and successfully plan your next interventional suite.

I am regularly asked, "Why does a GE CT scanner cost so much more than the other manufacturers?" We frequently see GE 8-slice CTs going for the same price as a Philips or Siemens 16-slice and this is similarly true for higher-end equipment. Why? Well, I’m glad you asked.

Here are three main reasons we have found GE CT scanners have a higher initial cost.

OEC lists 51 items (assuming you consolidate the image preset options –more on that later) describing the OEC 9900 C-arm in their technical data brochure. That's a lot of features with, potentially, a lot of chances to show you that the 9900 is a better machine than the OEC 9800. However, on the more pragmatic side of things, the OEC 9800 is more common, more affordable, and well-proven as a workhorse in its own right. So, how do these two C-arms really stack up side-by-side? Take a look at the graphic below to see for yourself, or keep reading for a summary.

About Us

Radiology and Imaging professionals come to us when they need help buying, selling, servicing and maintaining their medical imaging equipment: MRI, CT, C-Arm, Digital X-ray, PET/CT and Women's Health. We extend the life of imaging equipment so that healthcare providers worldwide can extend the lives of patients.